ABSTRACT: •We analyze overtourism as driver for population's opposition towards mega event.•As a case study the referenda for the 2026 Olympic Games in Innsbruck was chosen.•Over-crowded tourism destinations should abstain from organizing mega events.
Project description:Information technologies today can inform each of us about the route with the shortest time, but they do not contain incentives to manage travellers such that we all get collective benefits in travel times. To that end we need travel demand estimates and target strategies to reduce the traffic volume from the congested roads during peak hours in a feasible way. During large events, the traffic inconveniences in large cities are unusually high, yet temporary, and the entire population may be more willing to adopt collective recommendations for collective benefits in traffic. In this paper, we integrate, for the first time, big data resources to estimate the impact of events on traffic and propose target strategies for collective good at the urban scale. In the context of the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, we first predict the expected increase in traffic. To that end, we integrate data from mobile phones, Airbnb, Waze and transit information, with game schedules and expected attendance in each venue. Next, we evaluate different route choice scenarios for drivers during the peak hours. Finally, we gather information on the trips that contribute the most to the global congestion which could be redirected from vehicles to transit. Interestingly, we show that (i) following new route alternatives during the event with individual shortest times can save more collective travel time than keeping the routine routes used before the event, uncovering the positive value of information technologies during events; (ii) with only a small proportion of people selected from specific areas switching from driving to public transport, the collective travel time can be reduced to a great extent. Results are presented online for evaluation by the public and policymakers (www.flows-rio2016.com (last accessed 3 September 2017)).
Project description:The UEFA EURO 2020 football tournament was one of the largest Sporting Mega Events (SMEs) to take place during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mitigating the risk of virus transmission requires a multi-layered approach for any large event, more so in this case due to staging the tournament across eleven host countries. Yet, little is known about COVID-19 risks and mitigation from attending an event of this scale and nature. We examined the implementation of mitigation and messaging at EURO 2020 matches hosted at venues in the UK. The tournament was postponed from the summer of 2020 and played in June and July of 2021. Structured observations were conducted by 11 trained fieldwork-supporters at 10 matches played at Wembley Stadium, London, or Hampden Park, Glasgow. Fieldwork-supporters observed one-way systems and signage, and hand sanitizing stations inside the stadia, but reported significant variation in the implementation of staggered timeslots, testing upon entry, and procedures for exit. Adherence to planned measures by ticket holders and implementation by stewards waned as the tournament progressed culminating in an absence of enforced measures at the final. The non-compliance with COVID-19 mitigation measures was likely to have led to a significantly increased risk of transmission. Future events should consider how COVID-19 mitigation measures could become 'new norms' of fan behaviour, learning from what is already known about football fandom. Tournament organizers of SMEs can use these findings to promote clearer messaging on pandemic-driven changes in fan behaviour and best practices in mitigating risk at future sporting and cultural events.
Project description:The development of algorithms and the spread of digital infrastructure have contributed significantly to the productivity of the digital economy. Data has come to be known as the "oil of the digital economy". At the same time, data has begun to participate more deeply in the production activities of the global sports industry chain, and the international discussion on how to protect the rights of sports event data has been increasing. Based on the configurational theory and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis, this study discusses the factors affecting the protection of sports event data rights. The study found three configuration paths for achieving high enterprise data protection effectiveness and two for achieving low enterprise data protection effectiveness. The results of this study provide theoretical support for governments to address the issue of sports event data rights. They will also facilitate the safe use of data in sports, promote the global sports industry and humanitarian action development, and contribute to international sustainable development.
Project description:BackgroundMigrant construction workers involved in building infrastructure for mega-sporting events face elevated risks of illness and death. However, specific health outcomes for these workers have not been systematically reviewed, limiting opportunities to identify and address their challenges.MethodsThis study systematically reviewed health outcomes among migrant construction workers involved in mega-sporting events.Results89 eligible studies involving 23,307 workers were identified. Of these, only 11 directly addressed specific health outcomes, including heat stress, occupational fatalities, and sexually transmitted infections. Notably, increased heat exposure during peak construction phases and the proximity of deadlines for mega-sporting events were correlated with elevated rates of occupational fatalities. Other key adverse factors impacting migrant construction workers' health included an observed correlation between the timing of mega-sporting events and increased occupational fatalities, the involvement of labor recruiters, and shifting health and safety responsibilities among stakeholders (e.g., host states, event organizers, contractors, and recruitment agencies). Positive outcomes were observed when workers voluntarily engaged in non-mandatory safety activities, such as safety training programs and awareness meetings.ConclusionsThere is a critical need for longitudinal and comparative studies to comprehensively examine the health of migrant workers throughout all stages of their journey, from pre-migration to return. This review underscores the urgency of prioritizing evidence-based policies that address unique health risks in this population, including mitigation of heat stress and enforcement of occupational safety standards, particularly amid construction spikes preceding mega-sporting events.RecommendationsFuture research should prioritize understanding the unique health challenges faced by migrant workers to inform policy making, develop effective interventions, and implement best practices to improve their health and well-being.
Project description:Mega events attract mega crowds, and many data exchange transactions are involved among organizers, stakeholders, and individuals, which increase the risk of covert eavesdropping. Data hiding is essential for safeguarding the security, confidentiality, and integrity of information during mega events. It plays a vital role in reducing cyber risks and ensuring the seamless execution of these extensive gatherings. In this paper, a steganographic approach suitable for mega events communication is proposed. The proposed method utilizes the characteristics of Arabic letters and invisible Unicode characters to hide secret data, where each Arabic letter can hide two secret bits. The secret messages hidden using the proposed technique can be exchanged via emails, text messages, and social media, as these are the main communication channels in mega events. The proposed technique demonstrated notable performance with a high-capacity ratio averaging 178% and a perfect imperceptibility ratio of 100%, outperforming most of the previous work. In addition, it proves a performance of security comparable to previous approaches, with an average ratio of 72%. Furthermore, it is better in robustness than all related work, with a robustness against 70% of the possible attacks.
Project description:Nearly all mass gathering events worldwide were banned at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, as they were suspected of presenting a considerable risk for the transmission of SARS-CoV-2. We investigated the risk of transmitting SARS-CoV-2 by droplets and aerosols during an experimental indoor mass gathering event under three different hygiene practices, and used the data in a simulation study to estimate the resulting burden of disease under conditions of controlled epidemics. Our results show that the mean number of measured direct contacts per visitor was nine persons and this can be reduced substantially by appropriate hygiene practices. A comparison of two versions of ventilation with different air exchange rates and different airflows found that the system which performed worst allowed a ten-fold increase in the number of individuals exposed to infectious aerosols. The overall burden of infections resulting from indoor mass gatherings depends largely on the quality of the ventilation system and the hygiene practices. Presuming an effective ventilation system, indoor mass gathering events with suitable hygiene practices have a very small, if any, effect on epidemic spread.
Project description:BackgroundMajor sports events are the focus of the world. However, the gathering of crowds during these events creates huge risks of infectious diseases transmission, posing a significant public health threat.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to systematically review the epidemiological characteristics and prevention measures of infectious diseases at major sports events.MethodsThe procedure of this scoping review followed Arksey and O'Malley's five-step methodological framework. Electronic databases, including PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Embase, were searched systematically. The general information (ie, publication year, study type) of each study, sports events' features (ie, date and host location), infectious diseases' epidemiological characteristics (ie, epidemics, risk factors), prevention measures, and surveillance paradigm were extracted, categorized, and summarized.ResultsA total of 24,460 articles were retrieved from the databases and 358 studies were included in the final data synthesis based on selection criteria. A rapid growth of studies was found over recent years. The number of studies investigating epidemics and risk factors for sports events increased from 16/254 (6.3%) before 2000 to 201/254 (79.1%) after 2010. Studies focusing on prevention measures of infectious diseases accounted for 85.0% (238/280) of the articles published after 2010. A variety of infectious diseases have been reported, including respiratory tract infection, gastrointestinal infection, vector-borne infection, blood-borne infection, and water-contact infection. Among them, respiratory tract infections were the most concerning diseases (250/358, 69.8%). Besides some routine prevention measures targeted at risk factors of different diseases, strengthening surveillance was highlighted in the literature. The surveillance system appeared to have gone through three stages of development, including manual archiving, network-based systems, and automated intelligent platforms.ConclusionsThis critical summary and collation of previous empirical evidence is meaningful to provide references for holding major sports events. It is essential to improve the surveillance techniques for timely detection of the emergence of epidemics and to improve risk perception in future practice.
Project description:Mammals evolved to withstand frequent fasting periods due to hepatic production of glucose and ketone bodies. Because the fasting response is transcriptionally-regulated, we asked whether enhancer dynamics impose a transcriptional program during recurrent fasting and whether this produces effects distinct from a single fasting bout. We found that mice undergoing alternate-day fasting (ADF) respond to a following fasting bout profoundly differently from mice first experiencing fasting. Hundreds of genes enabling ketogenesis are ‘sensitized’, i.e. induced more strongly by fasting following ADF. Enhancers regulating these genes are also sensitized and harbor increased binding of the major ketogenic transcription factor. ADF mice show augmented ketogenesis and their sensitized enhancers are covalently marked with ketone body residues. Thus, we found that past fasting events are ‘remembered’ in hepatocytes, sensitizing their enhancers to the next fasting bout and augmenting ketogenesis. Our findings shed light on transcriptional regulation mediating adaptation to repeated environmental signals.
Project description:IntroductionOutdoor smoke-free policies (SFPs) at sports clubs may contribute to the prevention of smoking among adolescents. Adolescents' support for such policy is important to its success. The aim of this study is to explore adolescents' perceptions with regard to an outdoor SFP at sports clubs in the Netherlands.MethodsFocus group discussions (n=27) were held with 180 participants (aged 13-18 years) at 16 sports clubs. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data.ResultsParticipants generally supported an outdoor SFP at sports clubs. Five reasons for this support were reported: 1) children should not be exposed to smoking, 2) smoking and sports (clubs) do not fit together, 3) secondhand smoke is undesirable, 4) an outdoor SFP may enhance a sports club's image, and 5) an outdoor SFP contributes to the prevention of smoking. Some participants voiced considerations against an outdoor SFP, arguing amongst others, that smokers need to be taken into account, and that problems may occur with compliance and enforcement. Support for an outdoor SFP was stronger among participants at clubs with an outdoor SFP than among those without such policy.ConclusionsThis study shows that adolescents generally support an outdoor smoke-free policy at sports clubs. After implementation, the outdoor SFP was generally experienced as a normal practice. These results could encourage sports clubs without an outdoor SFP to become smoke-free as well.
Project description:Repetitive subconcussive head impacts (RSHI) are believed to induce sub-clinical brain injuries, potentially resulting in cumulative, long-term brain alterations. This study explores patterns of longitudinal brain white matter changes across sports with RSHI-exposure. A systematic literature search identified 22 datasets with longitudinal diffusion magnetic resonance imaging data. Four datasets were centrally pooled to perform uniform quality control and data preprocessing. A total of 131 non-concussed active athletes (American football, rugby, ice hockey; mean age: 20.06 ± 2.06 years) with baseline and post-season data were included. Nonparametric permutation inference (one-sample t tests, one-sided) was applied to analyze the difference maps of multiple diffusion parameters. The analyses revealed widespread lateralized patterns of sports-season-related increases and decreases in mean diffusivity (MD), radial diffusivity (RD), and axial diffusivity (AD) across spatially distinct white matter regions. Increases were shown across one MD-cluster (3195 voxels; mean change: 2.34%), one AD-cluster (5740 voxels; mean change: 1.75%), and three RD-clusters (817 total voxels; mean change: 3.11 to 4.70%). Decreases were shown across two MD-clusters (1637 total voxels; mean change: -1.43 to -1.48%), two RD-clusters (1240 total voxels; mean change: -1.92 to -1.93%), and one AD-cluster (724 voxels; mean change: -1.28%). The resulting pattern implies the presence of strain-induced injuries in central and brainstem regions, with comparatively milder physical exercise-induced effects across frontal and superior regions of the left hemisphere, which need further investigation. This article highlights key considerations that need to be addressed in future work to enhance our understanding of the nature of observed white matter changes, improve the comparability of findings across studies, and promote data pooling initiatives to allow more detailed investigations (e.g., exploring sex- and sport-specific effects).